To Greet the Dawn
by The Method's Madness
Summary: Leonardo is haunted by his nightmares, while he awaits the comming dawn... BEING REVISED
1. Chapter 1

To Greet the Dawn

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I just like to think I do..._

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I sat upon the rock, staring out across the meadow, waiting for the dawn. It's something I've done every morning since we arrived here at the Farm. It's the only way I've found to forget the nightmares of the night. 

_He twisted frantically, bringing up his katana just in time to block a stab from a foot ninja's blade. Ducking the next blow, he sent a round-house kick to the ninja's head and a following kick to his chest, sending the foot ninja sailing across the room and into the group attacking Don…_

A slight breeze caresses my skin, bringing in the heady scent of wild growing things from the nearby forest. There's still about ten minutes until sunrise. Ten more minutes with the dark…and the dreams…

"_Everyone, get the hell out of here!" He quickly disarmed another Foot soldier, and glanced around. Of course. While Mikey and Don acknowledged his order, Raph plunged in deeper into the fray, battling away with a ferocity that was both beautiful and terrible. Unfortunately, it also limited his focus and he didn't notice the sneak attack coming from behind…_

The horizon begins to glow a faint pink. I can hear the birds in the trees above me begin to stir...

"_RAPH!" He lunged towards his brother, praying he would make it in time._

"_What?" Raph spun around and watched in horror as his brother took a hit meant for him…_

Wincing as the bright morning light hits my eyes, I shrug off any lingering fear. The nightmares, which seemed so real by night, now dissolve into birdsong and a rooster's crow. Climbing to my feet, I grimace as my still-healing body lets me know it's been sitting in the same position for far too long. Stretching out my back, I turn and make my way back along the trail toward the house.

Walking along the sun-dappled path, I smile to myself, hearing the sound of an early morning fight break out. From the sound of things, it seems like Mikey is hogging the bathroom. I chuckle and quicken my pace. I know it's only a matter of time before Raph breaks down the door, which will send Don into a fit because he will be the one who has to fix it. In turn Raph will say that Mikey started the whole thing, which will send both Don and Raph after him, sending Mikey running for either me or Splinter.

Reaching the house, I arrive just in time to hear a crash followed by Mikey's somewhat girlish scream for help and Raph's maniac laughter. As I jog upstairs, I can't help but remember why the morning has always been a favorite time for me. For in the warm light of the sun, it's hard to fear the monsters of the night.

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Well? What do ya'll think? I was real nervous about posting my first story, but so far I haven't been asked to leave. Guess I must be doing something right!

Thanks to everyone who read and/or reviewed my last story! I appreciate it!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I've been thinking about making this a chaptered story, but I'm still a bit unsure. I'm not all that good a writing a believable dialouge between characters, which is why most of my work is character study.

However, change is always good, and depending on the reviews I get, I'll either continue this story, or leave it as a one-shot. Happy reading!

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Raph ran atop the rooftops, anger at his brother blinding him to anything else. Why couldn't he go topside every once 'n a while? Yes, he was topside now, but this wasn't a sanctioned trip. Leo, _perfect_ _Leo_, wasn't letting any of his brothers go topside because the Foot activity had been steadily increasing, although as to why remained a mystery even to Splinter, regardless of how many hours of meditation he put forth. And so, all four of the brothers where now stuck in the sewers, seeing way too much of each other and tempers where reaching the boiling point…

"Mickey, I _swear_ to God, you do that one more time and I'm going to shove that firecracker so far up your ass, Donnie won't _find it with a torch!"_ And with that comforting threat firmly in place, Raph returned to channel surfing while trying to ignore his rising frustration. Ever since Mickey found those firecrackers after a late night patrol with Don, he had been driving them all crazy, setting them off all over the Lair. Already he had booby trapped the bathroom, to where each time someone used the toilet, they were greeted with a colorful display of sparks and confetti. As Raph sank deeper into the hypnotic lure of daytime T.V. he failed to notice Mickey creeping up behind him, firecracker in hand.

_**POW!**_

For a second Raph wasn't sure what had happened. Everything was dead silent and bright spots of color were flashing about the room. Turning around, he spied his youngest brother giggling, rolling on the floor behind the couch, the remains of a firecracker around him. Raph shook his head, trying to clear his hearing as Leo walked into the room, an annoyed expression dominating his features. As Leo opened his mouth, beginning to lecture Mickey, Raph slowly began to make out what was being said.

"Mickey! _Three times_ in the last hour! What's wrong with you? You know we're all stuck down here until either the Foot activity calms down or we get some idea of what they're up to."

"Ya know, Leo, perhaps if ya let us go topside every once 'n a while, we'd be able to figga out what the Foot's up to? I don't think that's gonna happen with us sittin' around on our buts!"

"Shut up Raph! You know, for someone who's always complaining about me sticking my nose into other people's business, you sure do seem to do so quite a bit yourself.

"**_Your _**business? Excuse me Leo, but this is between Mickey and me, and we were doin' just fine before you butted in."

"Raph –"

"Nah, I'm done! We've been sittin' around, _rottin'_ down here fer God knows how long, while the Foot are up there, runnin' the city. It's time we do somethin' bout it 'n ya know it!"

Arms crossed, Leo snorted, "And just what do you suggest we do?"

Raph hit the side of his head. He was beginning to think that Leo's brain was malfunctioning due to sitting down here for so long, "Duh, topside for patrol!"

Leo shook his head, "Too risky, Raph. There's too many of the Foot. We'd be outnumbered one-hundred to one. I don't like this any better than the rest of you, but before we go advertising, we need to know what we're going up against."

"Ya, well, the only way that's gonna happen is if we go topside, which is exactly what I'm plannin' on doin'!"

That said, Raph stormed over to the door, and proceeding to make his way down the sewer, ignoring Leo all the way…

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K guys, it's now up to you. Do I contuine or leave is as my original one-shot? Read and Review!


	3. Chapter 3

Alright boys and girls, I have heard that this site does not allow us to use songs, but as I read through several of the fic's on this site, I find songs being used.

So, I'm taking a risk and posting this, and if anyone has a problem with it, feel free to contact me.

Now, without further ado…

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Chapter 3

_Disclaimer: The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are not mine. The song is called **Judgment Day**, by Shiloh (The Civil War-The Nashville Session). I do not own this either. I'm just borrowing..._

The storm howled above, warning all those brave or foolish enough to temp a venture topside to reconsider. The sewers were filling up with water quickly and if you could find a place that wasn't damp and threatening to breed mold, you could consider yourself lucky. Warm and dry at April's, Leo shifted in the chair and stared into the blank T.V screen, as if trying to conjure his father from its depts. So far, all he found was his own reflection, staring back morosely.

_"I sit among my charts and maps, and hear the lonely call of Taps, like the wind across the moon. I pray to God that I am right, and then I send boys off to fight and travel home in boxes far too soon…"_

There had been no warning, none that Shredder's forces had decided to attack. One minute they had been out trying to locate their hotheaded brother, and the next; they were fighting for their lives.

_"May God have mercy on my soul, for all the years that I have stolen from the men who follow what I say… may the families all forgive the orders I so calmly give them as I march their sons into harm's way..."_

Somehow, in the chaos, they had managed to mount a retreat towards the sewers. There, at least, they could outdistance them, and from there, instead of returning home and risking exposing the Lair to the Foot, they made their way slowly towards April's where they had found Raph, with Casey, safe and sound.

_"I write to mothers of their sons, and say "they were the bravest ones," and then I pour a drink and sleep…"_

After giving Raph the lecture of a lifetime, Leo had tried to sleep, but found it impossible. He was too worried about Splinter. Had the Foot Ninjas, somehow, during the pursuit through the sewers, managed to locate their Lair? If so, what had become of their master and father? And what would become of them?

_"But sleep is only filled with drums, a slice of death till morning comes, a heart of darkness where my soul can weep."_

Checking on his brothers, asleep in the living room, Leo almost smiled as he looked at the space where they had decided he would sleep. He was willing to share the sofa-bed, yes, but not with all of his brothers, and not when the bed was only made to hold two people. Well, maybe three if all three were very close friends. As things were, Leo could barley make out which arm and leg belong to which body. On his way out, he grabbed his swords. The blood needed to be washed off.

_"Come walk a mile in bloody shoes, and lose the men that I am losing; watch them pay the piper for my tune. Come walk among their ghosts with me, and look through eyes too used to seeing faces who have joined the lost platoon…"_

Leo scrubbed his swords until his hands were raw, fighting backhis inner turmoil all the while. What had become of his beloved father? He needed to find out. However, his brothers were in no condition to fight, after being dragged out in the rain, fighting, and worrying over each other, and the Foot ninja's were sure to be swarming the sewers. If Splinter was still alive, surly he would have tried to contact his sons by now? The fact that he had not weighted heavily on the eldest turtles heart, and he feared the worst had come to pass. He needed to know…

_"Come Judgment Day God only knows if man will reap the pain he's sows; and what will be the price he has to pay…but down here on the killing floor, among the crimson rags of war…for me, each day I live is Judgment Day… "_

Curtains bellowed in the breeze from the open window, allowing rain to splatter the floor of the kitchen. The cold air moved through the house and woke the youngest of the three mutant turtles sleeping in the apartment's living room. Grumbling to himself, he slowly cracked one eye open and saw that it was only one o'clock in the morning. Sighing, Mikey reached for the covers only to find them stolen in the night by his two older brothers.

Shivering, Mikey eased himself out of bed and made his way towards the source of the cold, almost managing to break his neck as he slid across the west kitchen floor. Now thoroughly annoyed, Mikey finally managed to close the window, ending the breeze that was threatening to turn him into a turtle-popsicle. He yawned, wondering were Leo was, as he didn't see him in the living room with Donnie and Raph, before noticing a note left on the table. Reading the note, Mikey quickly forgot his earlier annoyance and his shout managed not only to wake his brothers, but also the two humans sleeping in the apartments upper levels.

_"And out there on the killing floor, I hear the bloody sounds of war and watch a thousand more souls slip away. And sometimes it's too much to bear, the dead and dying everywhere, and everyday for me is Judgment Day…everyday for me is Judgment Day…"_

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A/N: Well, it's comming along. Like I said, I welcome any questions about the song. Simply e-mail me. However, flames will not be tolerated. I live in Southwest Texas, it's already hot enough without adding that to the fire. Let me know what ya'll think. 


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